staffers and a majority leader harry reid, minority leader mitch mcconnell are trying to negotiate a scaled-down debt deal to avoid some of the fiscal cliff and take other major decisions on taxes and spending to the future. again, in an afternoon white house meeting president obama pitch a debt plan he had outlined a week ago, prevent a tax increase for income of less than to an effective thousand dollars per year and extend long-term unemployment benefits. senate leaders are using that framework to try to craft a proposal to pass both houses of congress. aides say it would likely increase the threshold for tax increases, reversing massive pay cut from medicare doctors, and elections of millions of americans to avoid paying the alternative minimum tax. an increase in the debt ceiling is not part of the discussion. that is significant development for house republicans who won any increase in the borrowing limit it accompanied by an equal amount in spending cuts taking the debt ceiling of the table making it much easier for the scaled-down version to be negotiated. from here senate le